Oil-still.



O. C. SWAN.

OIL ST ILL.

APPLlCATlON FILED APR.28.19II. 1,2459%5 Patented Nov. 12, 1918.

ammmto'c @Zzim? 6521/07. 1/ W V www hurrah earns PTENTFF1GE A OLIVER G.SWAN, 0F DENVER, COLORADQ, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT AND MESNE A'SSIQN- MEWS,T9 THE SWAN PRQCESS OIL COMPANY, A COBPGBATIOII 0F CQLQEADQ.

GIL-STILL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 28, 1917. Serial No. 165,240.

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I OLIVER C. SWAN, a citizen of the United tates, cityand county of Denver and j State of Colorado, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Oil-Stills; and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be a full. clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in may be also effectively employedin the distillation of various grades and kinds of the heavierhydrocarbon oil's, as well as the lighter volatile derivatives thereof;

Supplementing this brief reference, the objects and advantages of thepresent inv'eiit'ion will be apparent, as incidental to the followingdisclosure, without the necessity of further initial statement, but inorder to more clearly understand the details of same, reference will nowbe had to the accompanying drawings; the single View of whichillustrates a longitudinal section,

taken vertically through the improved type of still, the steam feed andexhaust line pipesbeing omitted, as it is thought that they areunnecessary to a clear understanding of the invention, which resides inthe still itself and associated appurtenances as shown.

The exterior body of the still is preferably formed in three sections,of suitable sheet iron securely bolted or riveted together as usual, andconsists of the concave bot tom 1, the exterior dome-shaped cover 2 andthe intermediate elongated cylindrical section 3.

The bottom 1 is provided with an outlet 4 for withdrawing the residueoil after distillation, and the outer dome-shaped cover 2 is struck upto provide a shallow annular neck 5.

Within this exterior dome-shaped cover 2 is disposed a similarquasi-spherical memher 6, substantially spaced therefrom to provide adouble wall, and having an annular residing at the neck portion 7, whichfits snugly within the short neck 5. of the exterior cover.

A collar 8, having a flanged seating top, fits around the neck 5 andthis collar and the necks 5 and 7 are all riveted together, forming asteam tight joint; A similiar arrangement is provided at the lower edgesof the exterior and interiorcovers, as indicated at 9, so that the topof the still practically consists of a dome-shaped vapor chamber formedby the double walled cover providing an encompassing jacketed steamchamber 11 therefor.

On top of the flanged collar 8 is seated and bolted a hollow head 12,providing a secondary vapor chamber 13 in open communication with thestill, through the space 14, formed by the neck7, and said domeshapedvapor chamber.

The top of the hollow head is apertured and is provided with a stufiingbox or gland 15, adapted to journal a driven shaft, hereinafter referredto.

YThe wall of the hollow head 12 is also apertured ,to receive theoutlet'co nduit pipe 16 for the distillate vapors.

17 simply designates a support opening for a pressure gage, and 18 is asimilar arrangement'for athermometer, it not being deemed necessary toactually show a gage and a thermometer, their functioning eing clearlyunderstood. I may also state here that the still is equipped with all ofthe usual appurtenances, not shown in the sectional view, such as reliefvalves, sight glasses, gage glasses, peep holes, sampllng cocks, etc. 7

19 designates the inlet for the chamber 11, and 20 designates the outlettherefor, which will be further referred to.

I also provide a second jacketed steam chamber 21, interiorly of thestill, formed bv the annular plate 22, suitably riveted to the interiorwall of the cylinder section of the still. The position of this secondsteam chamber, as is clearly apparent from the drawings, is located at aposition immediately between the jacketed dome-shaped vapor chamber andthe highest level of the oil, or practically envelo s what we mayproperly term the foam c amber 23. This annular steam jacketed chamber21 is also provided with an inlet and an outlet, desig- Mill In thelower or oil compartment of the still, I arrange a closed steam coil, orprefer- .ably'a plurality of such coils. In the drawings, I haveillustrated two sets of such coils, the upper one being designated bythe numeral 26 and the lower one by the numeral 27. These closed steamcoils, respectively, have inlets and outlets 28 and 29 and 30 and 31.

32 designates an elongated open ended cylindrical well disposedcentrally of the coils, being spaced from the bottom 1 of the still, andsuitably held in place as by the upper and lower supporting bars 33 and34.

Centrally within and spaced fromvthe concave bottom 1 of the still, Imount, in any desired way, a bearing element 35, in line with theaperture of the hollow head and stuffing box or gland 15, which bearingelement receives the lower end of a vertical driven shaft 36, the upperend of which passes through said apertured hollow head and staffing box,and is geared up, as at 37, with any suitable driving means, which maybe provided with a controller or governor, not shown.

Secured to the bottom of this shaft and rotating within the concavebottom of the still is {at agitating element, comprising a lateral arm38, projecting on opposite sides of the shaft, and provided withdownwardly disposed agitating short paddles or arms 39, for keeping theoil and any water in the bottom of the'still in a state of agitation. 1

Mounted on this same shaft, within the well 32, there is a spiral blade40 acting as an oil conveyer for elevating the oil up and over the well,for causing complete circulation, as will more fully appear hereinafter.

Toward the upper part of the foam chamber 23 there is fixedly mounted apair of inwardly projecting supports, provided with upwardly disposedspaced breaker arms 43,

and immediately above/the same and sethe volatile vapors containedtherein.

teaaeet for sweetening or slightly agitating the oil by jets of incomingsteam.

This perforated steam coil is supplied with steam, after the still is infull operation, through the exhaust from the jacketed chamber 11.

A pipe line 46 leads from the exhaust 20 of the chamber 11, of thecover, to this perforated steam coil, through the branch 47, providedwith a valve 48. The pipe 46 continues beyond the branch 47 and isprovided with a valve 49, for purposes which will fully appear in thestatement of opera-- t1on.

The inner end of the inlet ipe for feeding the oil, to be distilled,into tlie still is designated at 50, the discharge being just above thebottom of the still, within the circle of the coil 45. This inlet pipeis provided with the usual controlling valve 51.

The vapor outlet pipe 16 does not lead directly to the condenser, therebeing interposed in the conduit line what I term a catch-all. Thisconsists of a .closed vessel 52, into which the vapor outlet pipe 16discharges, and from which an outlet vapor pipe 53 leads to thecondenser, not shown.

Within this vessel is disposed a bame plate 54, which will deflect anyspray of oil that might pass out with the vapors to the bottom of thecatch-alli, while the vapors pass on around the bafile plate and throughthe outlet pipe 53 to the condenser.

The bottom of this catch-all communicates, through a pipe 55, with thestill, at approximately the level of the oil therein. This pipe may beprovided with ac-ut-ofl' valve 56,. which is normally left open, but itis essential to have a check valve in the line, as at 57, so that whenthe column of oil in the pipe 55 exceeds the 115 pressure inside thestill, the check valve 57 will open and allow the spray oil from thecatch-all to discharge back again into the still until the opposingpressures again equalize.

1 20 Operation.

As the line pipes for the incomin and exhaust steam may obviousl beinterchanged at. will, it has not con deemed expedient to encumber thedrawings with a system of such piping, and it will also be understoodthat this particular type of still is preferably, although notnecessarily, employed in an oil purification sysdill tem, the severalelements of which are arranged as a plant on difierent floors of abuilding, so that the oil being reclaimed flows by gravitation orpumping from one part of the system to the other. Thusthe oil inlet pipe50 isfed from an oil storage reservoir, containing oil which has beenpreviously treated, washed and substantially filtered. U

In starting up-...th e still, I first out live steam into thesteamchamber 11, of the dome-shaped top through the inlet 19. At this stagethe .va ve 48, controlling the admission of steani to the perforatedcoil 45,

is closed, and the valve 49 is open.

The incoming steam drives out any waters of condensation, in the chamber11, through the outlet 20, the pipe 46, and past the valve 49 to a steamtrap, not shown, con- .nected up with the boiler.

This is continued until all of the waters of condensation are driven offand good hot steam is passing through theconduit, when the valve 48 isopened and valve 49 closed, so that the live steam will now pass intothe perforated coil 45 and issuing in jets therefrom will heat up theinterior of the still with open steam, which will also heat up the coils26 and 27 to a high degree,

as well as the vapor chamber 13 and vapor perature by the steam passingtherethrough,

the exhaust therefrom will now pass to the steam trap instead of to theinterior of the still.

Live steam is now out into the closed steam 1 coils 27 and 26, and theoil valve 51 is opened to allow of the introduction of oil:

into the still for about two-thirds of its capacity, and atsubstantially the same time the shaft 36 is started to rotate.

This first charge of oil is then heated up thoroughly, while the oilconveyer screw 40 elevates the oil up through the well 32, where itoverflows at the top and falls back again, causing acomplete circulationthrough the heating zone, and providing for a more intimate heating ofthe molecular particles of the oil body, thus causing rapid vaporizationor the lighter volatile substances.

As the scum or foam rises on the body of the oil up into the foamchamber'23, steam is also out into'the annular steam jacketed chamber21, which surrounds the foam chamher, so that this foam is maintained ata so very high temperature also, and the revolving beater arms breakingup this foam further assists in releasing the lighter volatile vapors,which pass on up into the; domeshaped cover. While I have stated that.the steam is cut into the annular jacketedchamber 21 when the foambegins to rise, it is obvious that this may be done at the same timethat the steam is cut into the closed coils.

, The oil vapors, however, are very sluggish in their ascent and wouldnormally condense in the still and fall back again into the body ofoil'or foam, as in the method of cracking distillation. While this isdesirably followed where the rimary aim is increased production ofgasolbne or naphtha derivatives, it is to be avoided in refining oilsfor lubricating purposes, where the aim is to get rid of the naphthas asquickly as possible. By my arrangement the spiral element 44,

operating in both said dome-shaped vapor out'through the pipe 53,leading to the con- Y denser, but should any sprays of oil be caused tobe sucked out with the vapors they would strike the bafile plate and bedeflected to the bottom of the catch-all and its lead out pipe to bereturned eventually the still as previously stated.

This initial charge of oil having now been distilled as far as possible,the oil valve 51 is partiall opened and set at a position to allow fresoil to be gradually fed automatically into the still, and'as the freshoil is thus gradually admitted, its lighter volatile constituents arepractically vaporized ofi immediately by the action of the heated oilinto which it discharges.

lVhen a full charge has finally been introduced into the still, say to alevel slightly below the well top, and after this complete charge hasbeen practically exhausted of its lighter distillates, the valve 49 isagain closed and the valve 48 opened to admit the steam from the tochamber 11 to the perforated coil 45, w ich issuing the same in smalljets up through the oil sweetens or slightly agitates the oil, andfurther distillation of the complete charge is continued.

As the foam rises in the foam chamber, the action of the heaters 42thereon and the action of the vapor conveyer 44 is the same asheretofore described, while the steam chamberll in the cover and theannular steam chamber 21 surrounding the foam continue to act tomaintain the vapors at the upper part of the still in a superheatednoncondensed condition.

The operation is thus continued until the body of the oil has-attainedthe desired flash and fire points, when the still is shut down, and theoil drawn off through the outlet 4 into barrels or other storagereceptacle.

While I have described my improved still with particular reference tothe production of a better quality of lubricating oil from waste usedoils, after having passed through a purification process, it is obviousthat the still itself is not necessarily limited to this particular use.

For instance in obtaining gasolene from crude oils, I might initiallyemploy my still for cracking distillation, by passmg a cooling mediumthrough the chamber 11, causing the vapors to condense within the stilland fall back, which as now understood in refineries increases the finalproduction of gasolene, and then after suchcracking distillation, themethod 'could be reversed and.

.the still caused to operate as hereinbefore described, so as to get offand condense the vapors 'as completely as possible.

It will be understood that, although I have shown and prefer to useheating coils interiorly of the still for the oil chamber, I do notexcept myself from direct exterior heating of the still if deemedexpedient in any cases.

It is also to be understood that, while I do not limit myself to all ofthe details as shown, neither do I make any separate claims for. wellknown structural features, of oil stills or degreasing apparatus, forheating and circulating the contents thereof, nor simply for thebreaking down or disintegration of arising foam to assist in releasingits 'condensable vapors, excepting as they may be combined in a novelreorganization of the elements as associated with the more genericprinciples and features of my invention as disclosed.

What I claim as new and patentable, is

1. In an oil still embodying an oil chamber and a foam chamber, with anoil inlet and an oil outlet for the former, in combination with a convexcover, providing an enlarged dome-like vapor chamber extendingsubstantially above said foam chamber as an unobstructed continuationthereof, said cover being of spaced double-wall structure, having avapor outlet therethrough, to form a jacketed fluid compartmentencompassing said vapor chamber; a vapor conduit leading from said vaporoutlet; a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet for said jacketed compart ment;a jacketed steam compartment encircling the wall of said foam chamberfor enveloping the foam therein; means for inaeaeee steam inlet and asteam outlet. for said second jacketed compartment for superheating thefoam encompassed thereby, the whole arrangement functioningsubstantially, as described.

2. In an oil still embodying an oil cham ber and a foam chamber, with anoil inlet and an oil outlet for the former, in combination with'a convexcover, providing an enlarged dome-like vapor chamber extendingsubstantially above said foam chamber as an unobstructed continuationthereof, said cover being of spaced double-wall structure, having avapor outlet therethrough, to provide a jacketed fluid compartmentencompassing said vapor chamber; a steam inlet and a steam outlet forsaid jacketed compartment; a secondary vapor chamber disposed above saidvapor outlet and in open communication with said dome-like chamberthrough said vapor outlet; a vapor conduit leading from said secondaryvapor chamber; an elongated spiral vapor conveyer mounted to rotate inboth said\ dome-like and secondary vapor chambers; means for.

.lheating' saidoil chamber, the whole arrangement functioningsubstantially as described.

3. In an oil still the combination with the.

body of the still, comprising an oil chamber and a foam chamber, saidoil chamber having an oil inlet and an oil outlet; means for heatingsaid oil chamber to the degree of vaporizing the volatile constituentsofthe --oil contained therein; a steam jacketed chamber formed interiorlyof the still and surrounding said foam chamber; a steam inlet and asteam outlet therefor; a doublewalled dome-shaped hollow cover for saidfoam chamber, providing an enlarged primary vapor chamber encompassed bysaid steam jacketed cover; a steam inlet and a steam .outlet for thelatter; a secondary vapor chamber surmounting said steam jacketed cover,in direct communication with the dome-shaped space thereof; a vaporoutlet pipe therefor; a driven shaft extending through said still andvapor chambers, circulating means mounted at the bottom of said shaft;beater arms mounted on said shaft in said foam chamber; and an elongatedvapor elevating screw conveyer mounted at the top of said shaft andoperating in both of the said vapor chambers, substantially asdescribed.

4. In an oil still the combination with the body of the still comprisingan oil chamber and a foam chamber, said oil chamber having an oil inletand an oil outlet; of means for heating said oil chamber to a degree ofat tensely heating said oil chamber; and a vaporizing thevolatileconstituents, of the we 1,284,945 tie oil contained therein; a steamjacketed of sail? still; a branch pipe connecting said dome-shaped coverfor said foam chamber, perfo ated coil with said exhaust pipe beprovidedwith a vapor outlet; a steam inlet tween said cover outlet and saidvalve; and 10 and a steam outlet for said steam jacketed a control valvein said branch pipe, substan- 5 cover; an exhaust pipe leading from saidtially as described.

steam outlet, and provided With a control In testimony Whereof,I afiixmy signature. valve; a perforated steam coil in the bottom OLIVER C.SWAN.

